Job delection control method for an image processing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A multifunction peripheral (MFP) transmits, if the number of cases of accumulated non-transmitted history information has reached a predetermined number of cases or a designated transmission time has been reached, a communication management report (i.e., history information). When the MFP transmits the communication management report, the MFP inputs a transmission job in which deletion prevention information has been set on. Further, when performing a transmission process for processing the input transmission job, the MFP determines whether an error job clear function is executable on the job based on the deletion prevention information. If the error job clear function is not executable on the job, the MFP stands by for retransmission to be instructed by a user.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus includinga function for managing history information, a control method of theimage processing apparatus, and a storage medium.

Description of the Related Art

There is an image processing apparatus including a print function, acopy function, and a transmission function. Further, there is an imageprocessing apparatus which manages history information, e.g.,communication history. Such an image processing apparatus includes areport print function for automatically printing, when a predeterminedamount of history (e.g., 50 cases) is accumulated, the historyinformation as a report.

An administrator files and collectively manages the printed historyinformation report and thus becomes capable of recognizing the way inwhich the image processing apparatus is used. Further, the administratormay generate an electronic version of the history information report andcollectively manage the report on a file system in a personal computer(PC) or a server. To do this, the administrator uses a scanner and oncereads the printed report and transmits the read data to a folder or ane-mail address thereof.

Furthermore, there is a technique in which the history information inthe image processing apparatus is transmitted as an e-mail to servicepersonnel according to a button operation by a user (refer to JapanesePatent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-34816).

Moreover, the image processing apparatus including the report printfunction for printing the history information report may also include areport transmission function for automatically transmitting the historyinformation report to the administrator using the transmission function.The image processing apparatus performs the report printing function andautomatically transmits the history information report to theadministrator via e-mail transmission or file transmission. Electronicmanagement of the history information thus becomes more convenient.

The history information used for outputting the report is temporarilystored in a buffer in the image processing apparatus. Since there is anupper limit on a buffer area storing such history information, when newhistory information is to be stored, old history information isoverwritten by the new history information. As a result, if the historyinformation is to be automatically outputted, it is necessary tosecurely output the old history information before being overwritten bythe new history information.

On the other hand, the transmission function of the image processingapparatus generally deletes a transmission job when the transmission hasbeen completed. Further, there is an image processing apparatus whichalso includes an error job clear function. The error job clear functionautomatically deletes the transmission job in the case where a failurehas occurred in a network or the server, or a communication error hasoccurred due to an address input error. However, if there is acommunication error when the history information report is automaticallytransmitted and the error job clear function deletes the transmissionjob for transmitting the report, the administrator cannot receive thehistory information. As a result, if the state in which the reportcannot be transmitted to the administrator due to the communicationerror continues, the history information which has not been outputtedmay be overwritten by the new history information. In such a case, aportion of the history information becomes lost even if theadministrator desires to manage all of the history information.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to providing a method for preventingan administrator from becoming unable to obtain history information.

According to an aspect of the present invention, an image processingapparatus includes a reading unit configured to read a document andgenerate image data, a storing unit configured to store historyinformation of a job, a generation unit configured to generate a job fortransmitting data, a transmission unit configured to transmit data basedon the job generated by the generation unit, a setting unit configuredto set, in a case where transmission by the transmission unit hasfailed, whether to delete a job in which the transmission has failed,and a job control unit configured to, in a case where data to betransmitted by the transmission unit includes the history information,not delete a job regardless of a setting by the setting unit, and tocontrol, in a case where the data to be transmitted by the transmissionunit does not include the history information, whether to delete a jobaccording to the setting by the setting unit.

Further features of the present invention will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of amultifunction peripheral (MFP) according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an operation screen.

FIG. 3 illustrates an operation screen.

FIG. 4 illustrates a data model of a transmission job queue.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a main routine.

FIG. 6 illustrates a data model of a communication history buffer.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a report output operation.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a transmission operation.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a job status confirmation operation.

FIG. 10 illustrates an operation screen.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a report output operation.

FIG. 12 illustrates a data model of the transmission job queue.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating the transmission operation.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Various exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be describedin detail below with reference to the drawings. The exemplaryembodiments to be described below do not limit the scope of claims ofthe present invention, and not all of combinations of features describedin the exemplary embodiments are necessary for a solution according tothe present invention.

A first exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be describedbelow. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configurationof an MFP 101. The MFP 101 is an example of the image processingapparatus. According to the present exemplary embodiment, the MFP willbe described below as an example of an image processing apparatus.However, it is not limited thereto and may be any image processingapparatus other than the MFP as long as the apparatus includes a datatransmission function.

Referring to FIG. 1, a control unit 110 including a central processingunit (CPU) 111 controls operations of the MFP 101. The CPU 111 readscontrol programs stored in a read-only memory (ROM) 112 or storage 114,and performs various types of control such as read control andtransmission control. A random access memory (RAM) 113 is a main storagememory of the CPU 111 and is used as a work area or a temporary storagearea for expanding the control programs stored in the storage 114. Thestorage 114 stores image data, various programs, various types ofhistory information and various types of setting information. Accordingto the present exemplary embodiment, the storage 114 is an auxiliarystorage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD). However, the storage 114may be a non-volatile storage device such as a flash disk represented bya solid state drive (SSD).

One CPU 111 in the MFP 101 performs each of the processes illustrated inthe flowcharts to be described below using one memory (i.e., RAM 113).However, it is not limited thereto. For example, the MFP 101 may performeach of the processes illustrated in the flowcharts to be describedbelow by a plurality of CPUs, RAMs, ROMs, and storages cooperating withone another. Further, a portion of the processes may be performed usinga hardware circuit such as an application specific integrated circuit(ASIC) and a field-programmable gate array (FPGA).

An operation unit interface (I/F) 115 connects an operation unit 116with the control unit 110. The operation unit 116 includes a liquidcrystal display unit having a touch panel function and a keyboard, andfunctions as a receiving unit for receiving a user instruction and as adisplay unit for displaying information to a user.

A printer unit I/F 117 connects a printer 118 with the control unit 110.Image data to be printed by the printer 118 is transferred from thecontrol unit 110 to the printer 118 via the printer I/F 117, and theprinter 118 prints an image based on the image data on a sheet such aspaper.

A scanner I/F 119 connects a scanner 120 with the control unit 110. Thescanner 120 reads a document set on the MFP 101, generates image data(i.e., an image file), and transfers the generated image data to thestorage 114 in the control unit 110 via the scanner I/F 119. The MFP 101is capable of transferring the image data generated by the scanner 120to the printer 118 and printing an image (i.e., perform a copyfunction). Further, the MFP 101 is capable of transmitting the imagedata generated by the scanner 120 using various transmission protocols(i.e., perform a transmission function). Furthermore, the MFP 101 iscapable of storing the image data generated by the scanner 120 in thestorage area readable and writable by the CPU 111 (i.e., perform astorage function). The control unit 110 is connected to a local areanetwork (LAN) 100 via a network I/F 121. The network I/F 121 transmitsthe image data and the information to an external device (i.e., a mailserver, a file server, or the PC) on the LAN 100 and receives theinformation from the external device on the LAN 100. Further, the MFP101 may include a modem (not illustrated) and perform facsimiletransmission and reception via a public switched telephone network(PSTN) (i.e., perform a facsimile function).

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a management setting screen the controlunit 110 displays on the operation unit 116. The administrator canspecify output settings of communication management reports accumulatedin the MFP 101 via the screen illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 illustratesan example of the setting in which the communication management reportis transmitted to an address “server1.abc.com” every time 100 cases ofnon-transmitted history information become accumulated.

Referring to FIG. 2, radio buttons 201, 203, and 205 are for selectingone setting from a plurality of buttons (i.e., choices) and are used forsetting conditions for outputting the communication management report.More specifically, the radio buttons 201 are used for selecting a methodfor outputting the communication management report. If a “transmit”button is selected, the MFP 101 is set to transmit the communicationmanagement report to the external device. If a “print” button isselected, the MFP 101 is set to print the communication managementreport with the printer 118.

An area 202 is for inputting a destination to which the communicationmanagement report is to be transmitted. If the area 202 is selected, ascreen for receiving input of the destination is displayed. Theadministrator then inputs destination information via the displayedscreen, so that the destination to which the communication managementreport is to be outputted can be set. According to the present exemplaryembodiment, an e-mail address can be set as the destination. Further,the MFP 101 is capable of setting a folder in the file server or the PCas the destination. In such a case, the MFP 101 can transmit thecommunication management report to a folder by using a transmissionprotocol such as the Server Message Block (SMB), the File TransferProtocol (FTP), and the Distributed Authoring and Versioning protocolfor the WWW (WebDAV).

When the destination is set via the area 202, the MFP 101 may perform aconnection test with the destination for preventing a communicationerror due to an error in inputting the destination information. In sucha case, sample data is transmitted to the set destination to confirmwhether the data is transmissible. If the transmission fails, a messagesuch as “there is an error in the destination information” is displayed,and the MFP 101 receives re-input of the destination. On the other hand,if the transmission is successful, the input destination information isset as the destination for outputting the communication managementreport.

The radio buttons 203 are used for selecting whether to automaticallyoutput the communication management report by setting the number ofcases of history information. If an “ON” button is selected, the MFP 101is set to automatically output the communication management report whenthe number of cases of non-outputted history information stored in acommunication history buffer 600 to be described below has become adesignated number or greater. On the other hand, if an “OFF” button isselected, the MFP 101 is set not to output the communication managementreport according to the condition based on the number of cases ofnon-transmitted history information. An area 204 is for inputting thedesignated number of cases. If the area 204 is selected, the number ofcases of history information to be a threshold value of automatictransmission can be set via the displayed screen or ten keys provided ashard keys outside the screen of the operation unit 116.

The radio buttons 205 are used for selecting whether to automaticallyoutput the communication management report according to timedesignation. If an “ON” button is selected, the MFP 101 is set to outputthe communication management report at a designated time. If an “OFF”button is selected, the MFP 101 is set not to output the communicationmanagement report according to the condition based on time. An operationkey 211 is for applying the output setting which has been input. If theoperation key 211 is pressed, the output setting which has been input isapplied as the setting information of the MFP 101. An operation key 212is for cancelling the output setting which has been input.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a setting screen the control unit 110displays on the operation unit 116. The user is capable of setting, viathe screen illustrated in FIG. 3, whether to validate a function (i.e.,an error job clear function) for deleting a transmission job when thecommunication error has occurred in the transmission job. Referring toFIG. 3, radio buttons 301 are for selecting one setting from theplurality of buttons (i.e., choices) and are used for setting whether tovalidate the error job clear function. If an “ON” button is selected,the error job clear function is valid, and the MFP 101 is set to delete,when the communication error has occurred in the transmission job, thetransmission job in which the communication error has occurred. If an“OFF” button is selected, the error job clear function is invalid, andthe MFP 101 is set not to delete, when the communication error hasoccurred in the transmission job, the transmission job and cause thetransmission job to stand by as an error job. An operation key 311 isfor applying the setting. If the operation key 311 is pressed, thesetting is stored in the storage 114 or the RAM 113. An operation key312 is for cancelling the setting.

Upon the user starting to use the MFP 101, a setting screen (notillustrated) for setting a process to be executed is displayed. The usersets a job via the operation unit 116 and presses a start key outside ofthe screen. The user can thus execute a transmission job, a print job,and a copy job. For example, if the user instructs execution of thetransmission job, the CPU 111 generates the transmission job accordingto the setting and inputs the transmission job to a transmission jobqueue 400 illustrated in FIG. 4. Further, if the user instructsexecution of the print job or the copy job, the print job or the copyjob is input to a print job queue (not illustrated).

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a data structure of the transmissionjob queue 400 which manages the transmission job, stored in the storage114 or the RAM 113. The CPU 111 manages the execution of a plurality oftransmission jobs based on the transmission job queue 400. The CPU 111executes a transmission process in order from the transmission jobpreviously input to the transmission job queue 400. Upon completing theexecution of the transmission job, the CPU 111 deletes the transmissionjob from the transmission job queue 400.

Referring to FIG. 4, information 401 indicates a reception numberassigned when starting execution of the transmission job. Information402 indicates a name of the transmission job. Information 403 indicatesa transmission protocol used for performing transmission. Information404 indicates the destination information. Information 405 indicatesdeletion prevention information for determining whether the error jobclear function is to be executed on the transmission job. If “ON” is setas the information 405, the job is not a job to be deleted based on theerror job clear function. If “ON” is not set as the information 405, thetransmission job is a job to be deleted based on the error job clearfunction. In the example illustrated in FIG. 4, the case where “ON” isnot set to the information 405 is indicated using “-”.

Information 406 indicates a status of the transmission job. For example,“standing by”, “transmitting”, or “error” is stored in the information406. “Standing by” is information indicating that the transmission jobis in a transmissible state. “Transmitting” is information indicatingthat the transmission process to be described below is being executed.And, “error” is information indicating that the transmission job isremaining in a transmission error state. The CPU 111 overwrites theinformation in the information 406 according to an execution status ofthe transmission job. According to the present exemplary embodiment, theexecution of the transmission job is managed using each of theinformation indicated in the information 401 to information 406.However, it is not limited thereto. For example, other fields may beincluded, such as a user name indicating the user executing the job ordate and time the job is input.

<Main Routine of MFP 101>

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation related to thetransmission function of the MFP 101. The MFP 101 receives atransmission job execution instruction via the operation unit 116 andexecutes the transmission job. Further, the MFP calls an event foroutputting the communication management report based on a setting valuepreviously set on a communication management report output settingscreen (illustrated in FIG. 2).

Each of the operations (i.e., steps) illustrated in the flowchart ofFIG. 5 is realized by the CPU 111 in the MFP 101 executing the controlprogram stored in the ROM 112 or the storage 114.

In step S501, the CPU 111 determines whether a communication managementreport output start time has been reached. If the CPU 111 determinesthat the communication management report output start time has beenreached (YES in step S501), the process proceeds to step S506. In stepS506, the CPU 111 outputs the communication management report. On theother hand, if the CPU 111 determines that the communication managementreport output start time has not been reached (NO in step S501), theprocess proceeds to step S502. In step S502, the CPU 111 determineswhether the transmission job execution instruction has been received. Ifthe transmission job execution instruction has been received (YES instep S502), the process proceeds to step S503. If the transmission jobexecution instruction has not been received (NO in step S502), theprocess returns to step S501, and the CPU 111 stands by for timerinterruption of the communication management report based on timedesignation and for the transmission job execution start instruction.

In step S503, the CPU 111 inputs the transmission job in thetransmission job queue 400. The execution of the transmission job inputto the transmission job queue will be described below with reference tothe flowchart illustrated in FIG. 8. Upon executing the transmission jobin step S503, the process proceeds to step S505. In step S505, the CPU111 determines whether the number of cases of non-outputted historyinformation has reached the designated number of cases. If the CPU 111determines that the number of cases of non-outputted history informationstored in the communication history buffer 600 to be described below hasreached the designated number of cases (YES in step S505), the processproceeds to step S506. In step S506, the CPU 111 outputs thecommunication management report. If the CPU 111 determines that thenumber of cases of non-outputted history information is less than thedesignated number of cases (NO in step S505), the process returns tostep S501 and the CPU 111 stands by for output of the communicationmanagement report and for input of the job.

The communication management report output start time is determined inthe case where the setting is “ON” for automatically outputting thecommunication management report by time designation. If the setting is“OFF”, the determination in step S501 is not performed. Further, thedetermination in step S505 is performed in the case where the setting is“ON” for automatically outputting the communication management report bydesignating the number of cases of history information. If the settingis “OFF”, the determination in step S505 is not performed.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a data structure of the communicationhistory buffer 600 for temporarily storing the history information,stored in the storage 114 or the RAM 113. Referring to FIG. 6,information 601 indicates transmission start time. Information 602indicates the destination information. Information 603 indicates thetransmission protocol used in the transmission. Information 604indicates the reception number assigned when execution of thetransmission job has started. Information 605 indicates a transmissionresult, and if the transmission is successful, “OK” is stored therein.On the other hand, if the transmission has failed, “NG” is storedtherein. In the case where E-mail transmission is performed, “NG” isstored when an error mail or an error response code is received from amail server. If the error mail or the error response code is notreceived, “-” which indicates that the transmission to the server or theaddressed destination has not been confirmed is stored as theinformation 605.

Information 606 indicates an output status, i.e., whether the historyinformation has been outputted as the communication management report,and is stored associated with each of the history information. If thehistory information has been outputted as the communication managementreport, “outputted” is stored as the information 606, and if the historyinformation has not yet been outputted, “not outputted” is stored as theinformation 606.

There is an upper limit to the storage area of the communication historybuffer 600 (e.g., 2000 cases). A trailing end and a leading end of abuffer area for temporarily storing the data are thus connected, and thebuffer area is circularly used. According to the present exemplaryembodiment, an index top indicates a top position of the non-outputtedhistory information and an index bottom indicates an end position of thenon-outputted history information.

The CPU 111 accesses the communication history buffer 600 and performshistory management. When storing the new history information, the oldhistory information is overwritten by the new history information. Forexample, if execution of a transmission job of the reception number“0407” is newly completed, the CPU 111 increments the index bottomindicating the end position of the history information. The CPU 111 thendetermines a storing position of the history information based on theincremented index bottom and stores the history informationcorresponding to the transmission job of the reception number “0407”therein.

<Communication Management Report Output Process>

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating in detail a communication managementreport output process performed in step S506 of the flowchartillustrated in FIG. 5. Each of the operations (i.e., steps) illustratedin the flowchart of FIG. 7 is realized by the CPU 111 in the MFP 101executing the control program stored in the ROM 112 or the storage 114.

In step S701, the CPU 111 determines the setting of a communicationmanagement report output method. If the MFP 101 is set to transmit thecommunication management report to the external device (“TRANSMIT” instep S701), the process proceeds to step S702. On the other hand, if theMFP 101 is set to print the communication management report on theprinter 118 therein (“PRINT” in step S701), the process proceeds to stepS706.

The case where the MFP 101 is to print the communication managementreport will be described below. In step S706, the CPU 111 obtains all ofthe history information in which “not outputted” is stored as theinformation 606 from the communication history buffer 600. The CPU 111then generates the communication management report in which the obtainedhistory information is included.

In step S707, the CPU 111 converts the communication management reportgenerated in step S706 to image data for printing on the printer 118 andexecutes a print job for printing the image data. Upon execution of theprint job, the printer 118 prints an image based on the communicationmanagement report on a recording medium such as a sheet. When the printjob for printing the communication management report is completed, theprocess proceeds to step S708. In step S708, the CPU 111 overwrites theinformation 606 corresponding to the history information included in thecommunication report generated in step S707 to “outputted” and ends thecommunication management report output process.

The case where the MFP 101 is to transmit the communication managementreport to the external device will be described below. In step S702, theCPU 111 obtains all of the history information in which “not outputted”is stored as the information 606 from the communication history buffer600. The CPU 111 then generates the communication management report inwhich the obtained history information is included. A data format of thecommunication management report generated in step S702 may be theabove-described image data or text data separated by commas such ascomma separated values (CSV). Further, the data may be a portabledocument format (PDF) document, a HyperText Markup Language (HTML)document, or an Extensible Markup Language (XML) document. Furthermore,the data may be a database file usable in a database management system.

In step S703, the CPU 111 specifies the settings of the transmission jobfor transmitting the communication management report to the destinationwhich has been preset via the setting screen illustrated in FIG. 2. Morespecifically, the CPU 111 sets the destination of the communicationmanagement report and the transmission protocol based on thetransmission information preset on the communication management reportoutput setting screen (illustrated in FIG. 2). Further, the CPU 111 setsthe communication management report generated in step S702 as the datato be transmitted. Furthermore, the CPU 111 sets the deletion preventioninformation (i.e., the information 405 illustrated in FIG. 4) as anoptional setting of the transmission job.

In step S704, the CPU 111 overwrites the information 606 correspondingto the history information written in the communication managementreport generated in step S702 to “outputted”.

In step S705, the CPU 111 generates a transmission job based on thesettings specified in step S703, inputs the generated transmission jobto the transmission job management queue 400, and ends the communicationmanagement report output process. The transmission job input to thetransmission job queue is transmitted based on a flowchart of thetransmission process illustrated in FIG. 8.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, the process of step S704is executed after specifying the settings of the transmission job.However, it is not limited thereto. For example, the process of stepS704 may be executed when generating the report in step S702. Further,the output status may be changed to “outputted” after inputting thetransmission job to the transmission job queue 400 in step S705.

<Transmission Process>

The CPU 111 performs transmission in order from the previously inputtransmission job based on the transmission job queue 400.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating transmission control performed whentransmitting data. The CPU 111 refers to the transmission job queue 400and starts the transmission process in the case where there is atransmission job standing by.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, the case where thetransmission jobs 410 and 411 illustrated in FIG. 4 are input to thetransmission job queue 400 and the transmission process corresponding tothe transmission job 410 is to start will be described as an example.Each of the operations (i.e., steps) illustrated in the flowchart ofFIG. 8 is realized by the CPU 111 in the MFP 101 executing the controlprogram stored in the ROM 112 or the storage 114.

In step S801, the CPU 111 uses the communication protocol “SMB” set tothe transmission job 410 and transmits data to be transmitted to theaddress “server1.abc.com”. If the CPU 111 cannot transmit the data, theCPU 111 automatically retries the transmission a predetermined number oftimes (e.g., three times).

In step S802, the CPU 111 determines whether the transmission performedin step S801 has failed. If CPU 111 cannot transmit the data even whenthe transmission has been retried for the predetermined number of times,the CPU 111 determines that the transmission has failed (YES in stepS802). The process then proceeds to step S805. If the CPU 111 has beenable to transmit the data, the CPU 111 determines that the transmissionhas not failed (the transmission has succeeded) (NO in step S802), andthe process proceeds to step S803.

In step S803, the CPU 111 stores the history information of the executedtransmission job in the communication history buffer 600 and incrementsthe number of cases of history information which has not been outputted.

In step S804, the CPU 111 deletes the transmission job from thetransmission job queue 400 and the transmission process ends. When thetransmission job is deleted, the data that has been transmitted by thetransmission job is similarly deleted. The deletion of the transmissionjob indicates deletion of the transmission job from the transmission jobqueue 400 and the data corresponding to the transmission job.

On the other hand, in step S805, the CPU 111 changes the status (i.e.,the information 406) of the transmission job being executed to “error”.In step S806, the CPU 111 determines whether the error job clearfunction is valid. If the error job clear function setting is “ON”, theCPU 111 determines that the error job clear function is valid (YES instep S806), and the process proceeds to step S807. If the error jobclear function setting is “OFF”, the CPU 111 determines that the errorjob clear function is not valid (i.e., invalid) (NO in step S806). Thetransmission process then ends while the transmission job remains as theerror job.

In step S807, the CPU 111 determines whether the error job clearfunction can be performed on the transmission job being executed. Morespecifically, the CPU 111 determines the value of the deletionprevention information (i.e., information 405) set to the transmissionjob being executed. If the deletion prevention information is “ON” (NOin step S807), the transmission process ends while the transmission jobremains as the error job. On the other hand, if the deletion preventioninformation is not “ON” (YES in step S807), the process proceeds to stepS803, and the CPU 111 stores the history information. In step S804, theCPU 111 deletes the transmission job from the transmission job queue 400and deletes the transmitted data. The transmission process then ends.

<Retransmission of Error Job>

The MFP 101 includes a transmission job confirmation function forconfirming the status of the transmission job standing by for execution,the transmission error job which has been executed, or the transmissionjob being executed. For example, the user can confirm the transmissionjob input to the transmission job queue 400 by pressing a job status key(not illustrated) included as the hard key outside of the screen.

Further, by selecting a transmission job, the user can instruct deletionor retransmission of the selected transmission job.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a process for controllingtransmission job status confirmation. Upon detecting that the user haspressed the job status key (not illustrated) included as the hard keyoutside of the screen, the CPU 111 executes the transmission job statusconfirmation process.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, the case where thetransmission jobs 410 and 411 are input in the transmission job queue400 and the transmission process corresponding to the transmission job410 is to start will be described as an example.

Each of the operations (i.e., steps) illustrated in the flowchart ofFIG. 9 is realized by the CPU 111 in the MFP 101 executing the controlprogram stored in the ROM 112 or the storage 114.

In step S901, the CPU 111 obtains a list (i.e., a transmission job list)of the transmission job standing by for execution, the transmissionerror job which has been executed, and the transmission job beingexecuted input in the transmission job queue 400. In step S902, the CPU111 displays a transmission job status confirmation screen on theoperation unit 116 based on the transmission job list obtained in stepS901.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of the transmission job statusconfirmation screen displayed on the operation unit 116, indicating thestate in which a transmission job 1001 has been selected. The user canconfirm the execution status of the transmission job input to the MFP101 via the screen illustrated in FIG. 10. Referring to FIG. 10,information 1000 indicates a list of transmission job information. Theinformation 1000 displays the list of job information such as the timethe job has been input, the transmission protocol, the destination, andthe job status to the user. The user can then select a transmission jobfrom the job list via the operation unit 116.

Further, an operation key 1012 is used when retransmitting the selectedtransmission job. An operation key 1013 is for deleting the selectedtransmission job. An operation key 1014 is for closing the transmissionjob status confirmation screen and ending the transmission jobconfirmation.

In step S903 of the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 9, the CPU 111determines whether retransmission of the transmission job has beeninstructed via the transmission job status confirmation screenillustrated in FIG. 10. If the CPU 111 detects that the user has pressedthe operation key 1012, the CPU 111 determines that the retransmissionof the transmission job has been instructed (YES in step S903). Theprocess then proceeds to step S904. In step S904, the CPU 111 changesthe status of the transmission job in the transmission job queue 400corresponding to the transmission job information selected by the userto “standing by”. The CPU 111 retransmits, based on the transmissionprocess illustrated in the flowchart of FIG. 8, the transmission jobwhich the status thereof has been changed to “standing by” in step S904.

On the other hand, if the user has not pressed the operation key 1012,the CPU 111 determines that the retransmission of the transmission jobhas not been instructed (NO in step S903). The process then proceeds tostep S905. In step S905, the CPU 111 determines whether the user hasinstructed to delete the transmission job via the transmission jobstatus confirmation screen illustrated in FIG. 10. If the CPU 111detects that the user has pressed the operation key 1013, the CPU 111determines that the user has instructed to delete the transmission job(YES in step S905), and the process proceeds to step S906. In step S906,the CPU 111 deletes the transmission job corresponding to thetransmission job information selected by the user from the transmissionjob queue 400 and the transmitted data. The transmission process thenends. If the deletion prevention information (i.e., the information 405illustrated in FIG. 4) of the transmission job is “ON”, the transmissionjob may be caused not to be deleted even if the user has pressed theoperation key 1013. Further, the user having an authority of managementof the MFP 101 may be caused to be the only user allowed to delete thejob in which the deletion prevention information is “ON”.

If the operation key 1013 is not pressed, the CPU 111 determines thatthe user has not instructed to delete the transmission job (NO in stepS905), and the process proceeds to step S907.

In step S907, the CPU 111 determines whether to end the transmission jobstatus confirmation. If the CPU 111 detects that the operation key 1014has been pressed, the CPU 111 ends the transmission job statusconfirmation (YES in step S907). If the operation key 1014 is notpressed, the process returns to step S903, and the CPU 111 stands by fora user instruction. The instruction using the operation key 1014 hasbeen described as an example of the instruction for ending thetransmission job status confirmation. However, it is not limitedthereto. For example, the CPU 111 may be triggered to end thetransmission job status confirmation in the case where the job statuskey (not illustrated) provided as the hard key outside of the screen isrepressed, or in the case where the screen returns to an initial screen(i.e., performs auto clear) according to elapsing of time.

As described above, when the MFP 101 is to transmit the communicationmanagement report, the MFP 101 generates the transmission job to whichthe deletion prevention information is added (i.e., refer to FIGS. 5 and7) and inputs the transmission job to the transmission job queue 400.The input transmission job is transmitted to the destination based onthe flowchart illustrated in FIG. 8. Since the error job clear function(i.e., process of step S805) is not performed on the transmission job towhich the deletion prevention information is added, the job can becaused to remain as the error job even if the transmission has failed.

If the transmission job to which the deletion prevention information isadded becomes an error job (i.e., NO in step S807), the transmission jobbeing executed may be changed to a time-designated job in addition toperforming the above-described control operation. The time-designatedjob is a transmission job set to be transmitted when the designated timehas been reached. In such a case, it is desirable to change the job tothe time-designated job in which the transmission starts after thenetwork or a transmission destination device has recovered from thefailure. For example, the job is changed to the time-designated job inwhich the transmission is performed a day after.

Further, if the CPU 111 determines that the error job clear setting ison (YES in step S806) and a job type is history transmission based onthe job name (information 402), the MFP 101 may be caused to print thecommunication management report. Furthermore, if the MFP 101 includes astorage box for storing image data read using the scanner 120 and forreusing the image data, the MFP 101 may store the communicationmanagement report in the storage box.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, the case where thehistory information of the transmission job is outputted as thecommunication management report has been described as an example.However, it is not limited thereto. For example, the communicationmanagement report including the history information on the transmissionjob and the history information on a received job may be collectivelyoutputted.

Further, the present exemplary embodiment may be applied to the casewhere a print management report with respect to a print job or a copyjob is to be transmitted to the external device. Furthermore, thepresent invention may be applied to the case where the historyinformation temporarily stored in the MFP 101 is to be automaticallytransmitted to the external device. An example is transmitting a storagemanagement report with respect to a storing job for scanning image dataand storing the scanned data in a box in the MFP 101. Moreover, thepresent invention is applicable to the case where the historyinformation is manually transmitted by a user operation on a screen (notillustrated) displaying the job history information.

As described above, according to the present exemplary embodiment, thetransmission job for transmitting the history information can beprevented from being automatically deleted even if the communicationerror has occurred when performing the transmission process. The user iscapable of selecting the transmission job for transmitting the historyinformation and of instructing retransmission. By such a method, thehistory information can be transmitted without exception. Further, thetransmission job for transmitting the history information can beretransmitted by designating the time. As a result, highly convenienthistory information transmission can be realized.

A second exemplary embodiment according to the present invention will bedescribed below. According to the present exemplary embodiment, if thecommunication error occurs when performing transmission, a filecorresponding to the history information report is saved in the area forstoring texts in the storage 114. The saved file is transmitted whentransmitting the subsequent report. Such a history informationtransmission process will be described below. Detailed description onthe configurations similar to the first exemplary embodiment will beomitted.

The CPU 111 executes the process of the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 5,receives a transmission job execution instruction via the operation unit116, and executes the transmission job similarly as the first exemplaryembodiment. Further, the MFP 101 outputs the communication managementreport in step S506 based on the setting value preset on thecommunication management report output setting screen (illustrated inFIG. 2).

<Communication Management Report Output Process>

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating in detail the communicationmanagement report output process performed in step S506. According tothe second exemplary embodiment, the communication management reportoutput process based on the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 11 isperformed in addition to the process of the flowchart illustrated inFIG. 7.

Each of the operations (i.e., steps) illustrated in the flowchart ofFIG. 11 is realized by the CPU 111 in the MFP 101 executing the controlprogram stored in the ROM 112 or the storage 114.

In step S1101, the CPU 111 determines the setting of the communicationmanagement report output method. If the MFP 101 is set to transmit thecommunication management report to the external device (“TRANSMIT” instep S1101), the process proceeds to step S1102. If the MFP 101 is setto print the communication management report (“PRINT” in step S1101),the process proceeds to step S1108.

The case where the MFP 101 is to print the communication managementreport will be described below. In step S1108 to step S1110, the CPU 111executes the communication management report output process similarly asin step S706 to step S708, and the communication management reportoutput process ends.

The case where the MFP 101 is to transmit the communication managementreport to the external device will be described below.

In step S1102, the CPU 111 generates the communication management reportsimilarly as in step S702. In step S1103, the CPU 111 checks whether thecommunication management report exists in a save area to be describedbelow. If the communication management report exists (YES in stepS1103), the process proceeds to step S1104. If there is no savedcommunication management report (NO in step S1103), the process proceedsto step S1105. In step S1104, the CPU 111 obtains the communicationmanagement report stored in the save area.

The timings of executing step S1103 and step S1104 are not limited tothe above. For example, the CPU 111 may previously obtain thecommunication management report before generating the communicationmanagement report in step S1102.

In step S1105, the CPU 111 specifies the settings of the transmissionjob for transmitting the communication management report to thedestination preset via the setting screen illustrated in FIG. 2. Morespecifically, the CPU 111 sets the destination of the communicationmanagement report and the transmission protocol based on thetransmission information preset on the communication management reportoutput setting screen (illustrated in FIG. 2). Further, the CPU 111 setsthe communication management report generated in step S1102 and thecommunication management report generated in step S1104 as the data tobe transmitted. Furthermore, the CPU 111 sets “YES” to the settinginformation on whether to save the data (i.e., data save information) asan optional setting of the transmission job.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example of a data structure of a transmission jobqueue 1200 stored in the storage 114 or the RAM 113. Referring to FIG.12, the transmission job queue 1200 corresponds to the transmission jobqueue 400 according to the first exemplary embodiment, and thetransmission job has a data save information field indicated as ininformation 1201 instead of the information 405.

Since the information indicated as the information 401 to theinformation 404 and the information 406 are similar to those accordingto the first exemplary embodiment, description will be omitted. Theinformation 1201 is the data save information for determining whether tosave the data when performing the error job clear function. In FIG. 12,the case where “YES” is not added to the information 1201 is indicatedas “-”.

In step S1106 illustrated in FIG. 11, the CPU 111 overwrites “outputted”on the information 606 corresponding to the history information includedin the communication management report generated in step S1102. In stepS1107, the CPU 111 inputs the transmission job set in step S1105 to thetransmission job queue 1200 to be described below. The transmission jobinput to the transmission job queue is transmitted based on theflowchart of the transmission process illustrated in FIG. 13.

<Transmission Process>

According to the second exemplary embodiment, the transmission processbased on the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 13 is performed instead ofthe process of the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 8 according to thefirst exemplary embodiment. FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustratingtransmission control performed when transmitting data. The CPU 111refers to the transmission job queue 1200 and starts the transmissionprocess in the case where there is a transmission job standing by.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, the case where thetransmission jobs 410 and 411 are input to the transmission job queue1200, and the transmission process corresponding to the transmission job410 is to start will be described as an example.

Each of the operations (i.e., steps) illustrated in the flowchart ofFIG. 13 is realized by the CPU 111 in the MFP 101 executing the controlprogram stored in the ROM 112 or the storage 114.

In step S1301 and step S1302, the CPU 111 transmits data to betransmitted to the set destination and determines whether thetransmission has failed, similarly as in step S801 and step S802 of theflowchart illustrated in FIG. 8. If the CPU 111 determines that thetransmission has not failed (NO in step S1302), the process proceeds tostep S1303, and if the CPU 111 determines that the transmission hasfailed (YES in step S1302), the process proceeds to step S1305. In stepS1303, the CPU 111 stores the history information of the executedtransmission job in the communication history buffer 600 similarly as instep S803. In step S1303, the CPU 111 deletes the transmission jobsimilarly as in step S804, and the transmission process ends.

In step S1305, the CPU 111 changes the status (i.e., information 406) ofthe transmission job being executed to “error”. In step S1306, the CPU111 determines whether the error job clear function is valid. If the CPU111 determines that the error job clear function is valid (YES in stepS1306), the process proceeds to step S1307. If the CPU 111 determinesthat the error job clear function is not valid (NO in step S1306), thetransmission process then ends while the transmission job remains as theerror job.

In step S1307, the CPU 111 determines whether the transmission job beingexecuted is a job in which the data is to be saved. More specifically,the CPU 111 checks the value of the data save information (i.e., theinformation 1201) set to the transmission job being executed. If thevalue of the information 1201 is “YES”, the CPU 111 determines that thetransmission job being executed is a job in which the data is to besaved (YES in step S1307), and the process proceeds to step S1308. Ifthe value of the information 1201 is not “YES”, the CPU 111 determinesthat the transmission job being executed is not a job in which the datais to be saved (NO in step S1307), and the process proceeds to stepS1303. In step S1303, the CPU 111 stores the history information anddeletes the transmission job. The transmission process then ends.

In step S1308, the CPU 111 stores the data, which the MFP 101 has failedto transmit, in the save area of the storage 114. According to thepresent exemplary embodiment, an example of the process for storing thedata in the save area will be described below. The CPU 111 determines adirectory in which the data is to be stored based on the job name (i.e.,the information 402) set to the transmission job. The CPU 111 thenstores the data, which the MFP 101 has failed to transmit, in thedetermined directory. For example, since the job name of thetransmission job 410 is “history transmission”, a “history transmission”directory directly below the save area directory is selected. The filecorresponding to the data, which the MFP 101 has failed to transmit, isthus stored below the “history transmission” directory. The originalfile name may be used as the file name when storing it in the save area,or the file name may be renamed to the file name in which a characterstring such as “ERR” is added to the head of the file name.

A directory configuration of the save area and the file name and a filepath of the data to be saved are not limited to the above, as long as itis determinable whether the communication management report exists instep S1103 of the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 11.

Upon ending data saving process in step S1308, the process proceeds tostep S1303. In step S1303, the CPU 111 stores the history informationand deletes the transmission job. The transmission process then ends.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, the information fordetermining whether to save the data when the error job clear functionis to be performed is managed as the information 1201. However, it isnot limited thereto. For example, whether to save the data may bedetermined from the job name input as the information 402.

<Retransmission of Error Job>

The user can check the transmission job input to the transmission jobqueue 1200 by pressing a job status key (not illustrated) included asthe hard key outside of the screen. Further, the user can select thetransmission job and instruct deletion or retransmission of the selectedtransmission job. Since such transmission job status confirmationprocess is similar to the transmission job status confirmation processillustrated in the flowchart of FIG. 9 according to the first exemplaryembodiment, description will be omitted.

If the CPU 111 has failed to transmit the data (YES in step S1302) anddetermines that the job type is the history transmission from the nameof the transmission job being executed (i.e., the information 402), theMFP 101 may be caused to print the communication management report.Further, if the MFP 101 includes a storing box for storing the imagedata read using the scanner 120 and for reusing the image data, the MFP101 may store the communication management report in the box.

As described above, according to the present exemplary embodiment, whendeleting the job for transmitting the history information, the data ofthe history information can be saved. Further, when transmitting thehistory information report, the history information report can betransmitted by including the saved history information data (i.e., thesave data). By such a method, the history information can be transmittedwithout exception.

According to the present invention, the method for outputting thehistory information, i.e., by printing or by transmission, is previouslyselected. However, it is not limited thereto. For example, when thecommunication management report is automatically outputted by satisfyingthe condition of the designated number of cases or the designated time,both printing and transmission of the history information may beperformed.

Embodiments of the present invention can also be realized by a computerof a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computer executableinstructions recorded on a storage medium (e.g., non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium) to perform the functions of one ormore of the above-described embodiment(s) of the present invention, andby a method performed by the computer of the system or apparatus by, forexample, reading out and executing the computer executable instructionsfrom the storage medium to perform the functions of one or more of theabove-described embodiment(s). The computer may comprise one or more ofa central processing unit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU), or othercircuitry, and may include a network of separate computers or separatecomputer processors. The computer executable instructions may beprovided to the computer, for example, from a network or the storagemedium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or more of ahard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), astorage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

According to the present invention, the job in which the communicationerror has occurred is prevented from remaining unnecessarily, andunintentional loss of the history information is prevented.

While the present invention has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of thefollowing claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as toencompass all such modifications and equivalent structures andfunctions.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No.2014-125728, filed Jun. 18, 2014, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. A control method for a data processing apparatuscomprising: executing a transmission job for transmitting data; storing,in a storage, history information of the executed transmission job;receiving, from a user, a setting as to whether or not to delete atransmission job in which a communication error has occurred;controlling, in accordance with the received setting, whether or not todelete the transmission job in which the communication error hasoccurred; and controlling such that, in a case where a transmission jobfor transmitting the history information stored in the storage isexecuted, the transmission job for transmitting the history informationstored in the storage, in which the communication error has occurred, isnot deleted regardless of the received setting.
 2. The method accordingto claim 1, further comprising: receiving, from the user, an executinginstruction for the transmission job for transmitting the historyinformation stored in the storage, in which the communication error hasoccurred, wherein the transmission job for transmitting the historyinformation stored in the storage is executed based on the executinginstruction.
 3. The method according to claim 2, further comprisingdisplaying transmission jobs for transmitting the history informationstored in the storage, in which the communication error has occurred;and receiving the executing instruction for executing a transmission jobselected from among the displayed transmission jobs.
 4. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the transmission job for transmitting thehistory information stored in the storage, in which the communicationerror has occurred, is executed at a designated time which is later thana time at which the communication error has occurred during transmittingof the history information.
 5. The method according to claim 1, whereininformation, which indicates whether history information has beenoutputted, is stored in association with each history information, andwherein in a case where the number of cases of non-outputted historyinformation has reached a predetermined number of cases, thetransmission job for transmitting the history information stored in thestorage, in which the communication error has occurred, is executed. 6.The method according to claim 5, further comprising changing, in a casewhere the data including non-outputted history information is to betransmitted, the information stored in association with the historyinformation to information indicating that the history information hasbeen outputted.
 7. The method according to claim 1, further comprisingsetting a time for transmitting the history information stored in thestorage, wherein the transmission job for transmitting the historyinformation stored in the storage is executed based on the set time. 8.The method according to claim 1, wherein the data processing apparatusincludes a scanner configured to read a document to generate data of thedocument, and wherein the transmission job is for transmitting the dataof the document.
 9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the historyinformation includes at least one of a transmission starting time, atransmission destination, a transmission protocol, and a transmissionresult.
 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the data processingapparatus includes a printer configured to print data on a sheet, andwherein in a case where the communication error has occurred duringtransmitting of the history information, the history information storedin the storage is printed by the printer.
 11. The method according toclaim 1, wherein deletion of the transmission job includes deletion ofthe transmission job from a transmission queue and deletion oftransmission target data that is to be transmitted by the transmissionjob.
 12. The method according to claim 1, wherein a transmission job forwhich transmission has succeeded is deleted.
 13. The method according toclaim 1, wherein deletion prevention information is set for thetransmission job for transmitting the history information stored in thestorage; and on a basis of the set deletion prevention information, thetransmission job for transmitting the history information stored in thestorage, in which the communication error has occurred, is not deleted.14. A data processing apparatus comprising: a communication interfacethat communicates with a external apparatus; and one or more processorsthat executes a set of instructions to; execute a transmission job fortransmitting data via the communication interface; storing, in astorage, history information of the transmission job; receiving asetting as to whether or not to delete a transmission job in which acommunication error has occurred; controlling, in accordance with thereceived setting, whether or not to delete the transmission job in whichthe communication error has occurred; and controlling such that, in acase where a transmission job for transmitting the history informationstored in the storage is executed, the transmission job for transmittingthe history information stored in the storage, in which thecommunication error has occurred, is not deleted regardless of thereceived setting.
 15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumfor storing a computer executable instructions that, when executed by acomputer, control a data processing apparatus to execute a method, themethod comprising: executing a data transmission job for transmittingdata; storing, in a storage, history information of the executedtransmission job; receiving, from a user, a setting as to whether or notto delete a transmission job in which a communication error hasoccurred; controlling, in accordance with the received setting, whetheror not to delete the transmission job in which the communication errorhas occurred; and controlling such that, in a case where a transmissionjob for transmitting the history information stored in the storage isexecuted, the transmission job for transmitting the history informationstored in the storage, in which the communication error has occurred, isnot deleted regardless of the received setting.